Reports: DRB-Hicom to cut Proton’s costs, review Lotus

Now that DRB-Hicom is in control of Proton, what’s in store for the national carmaker? A report by Business Times details the changes that will happen in terms of cost cutting and efficiency, trimming “excess fat” currently carried by Proton. The reporter quoted unnamed “sources close to the deal”.

For starters, no large scale staff retrenchment is expected, although some changes in the top management are predicted to happen. DRB-HICOM wants to turn Proton into a serious regional player within three years, before becoming a global player two years from that point. The conglomerate will also strengthen Proton’s vendor and dealer network, while improving staff skills by leveraging on its International College of Automotive (ICAM) in Pahang.

“There will be zero lay-off as the immediate focus is on the low-hanging fruits at Proton. The group will trim any excess fat in product planning, consultancy contracts and third-party service providers, among others,” their sources said.

An example is the storage of Proton cars at a third-party site in Sijangkang, Selangor. “The group does not think it is necessary to farm out this logistic service as Proton cars can be distributed to dealers and branches efficiently by using a good IT infrastructure. A lot of money can be saved from this,” they added.

“If Lotus continues to ride on Proton, it will be cancerous, it will be like a parasite. Hence, it requires a review so that it can stand alone and be successful, perhaps like what Audi is to its parent Volkswagen AG,” BT’s sources said, adding that the review will focus on Lotus’ involvement in motorsports sponsorships, especially in F1.

If this report is accurate, there is sure to be plenty of boardroom battles in Proton, in the near future.

Danny Tan loves driving as much as he loves a certain herbal meat soup, and sweet engine music as much as drum beats. He has been in the auto industry since 2006, previously filling the pages of two motoring magazines before joining this website. Enjoys detailing the experience more than the technical details.

OMG the Lotus sport cars are fugly ! front copy the VW group Lamborghini Aventador but the Aventador is way better looking and beautiful but this? ! anyway if Protongs compared to VW = nothing compared to giant VW !

this kind of mentality is the reason why malaysian cant be a global contender. damnit even JC, who is very critical on almost everything praises (new) lotus cars, like evora. outsiders can see ‘gems’ in our product, why cant we do the same? are we all just wannabes?

I already talked many times. Lotus is a burden to the proton and it is the expensive playground for the Lotus engineer to play with their idea as well as Dany Bahar. Lotus never earn a single sen for proton since took over. Better cut this cancer growth before it metastasize to the body (DRB-HICOM). Who cares how potential is Bahar, if he can’t earn money for proton, better resign?

Lotus is good for the reputation and brand recognition, it also develops technologies that Proton can profit from. Why has VW bought Bugatti? Why do they produce the Veyron, which was very expensive to begin with, and with each car they produce and sell they lose money?! Because it is good for the brand.

I don’t think so. Unless proton is the size of the VW. This tell us that when you have small head, don’t wear big hat. Bugatti does not consume all the profit from VW where Lotus almost consume all profit from Proton. Proton is Jaguh Kampung where VW is as auto giant (Jaguh Dunia). You are not earning a lot but want to wear branded shirt. I’m sorry, this is strictly from economy point of view. A company not earning money, what is the point to keep it?

True, but now they already have invested a lot in it, wouldn’t it be wise to keep it at least so until they can see if they get something out of that investment?

Should Proton expand to Europe (again) I think they could make use of Lotus. Europeans are suckers for good sporty handling. I wouldn’t make any premature decisions (though I would pull out of F1 immediately, there really is no point in that). And unless the rally cars get sold to normal customers as well (think Evo etc.) then that, too might be a waste of money.

There also has to be more benefits from the work with Lotus, i.e. the new Lotus engine should appear in Protons (detuned perhaps), or vice versa. Parts developed for Lotus should find their way into Protons, perhaps they can be based on the same platform etc. Or like in the past there was for example the Lotus Omega, which really was a Vauxhall/Opel Omega tuned and modified by Lotus.

haha lotus technology use on proton, in the end still earn malaysia money, never hit to oversea market, if do how far can their go with proton reputation, lotus is burning money company , PROTON got no money…that’s why when Lotus came asking for money to develop their 5 new car line-up, PROTON had to “arrange a huge loan of around 270 million Pound Sterling” for them on the 16th April 2011. Check out the link: http://www.proton.com/About/Corporate/Investors/Announcements/2011/Apr-04/Lotus-Cars-Limited-Enters-Agreement-For-Syndicated.aspx

270 million pound are not that much. The development of the last gen Merc E class cost around 2 billion Euro. Only for one model.

I wonder why Lotus needs 5 new models… they first need one that sells well, not 5 that won’t. Later then they can expand.

Lotus should also share their technology with Proton. Improve Campro, give it a new Lotus name and use it in a Lotus as well as in a Proton. Use the same platform if possible… car magazines and shows around the world would probably test the new Lotus, and when they report that it is based on a Proton that helps in entering those markets. Lotus dealerships around the world could be used to sell and service Protons. etc.

Its stupid if Proton lets go of Lotus now after considering all the expenses already put into upgrading Lotus’ image. It will be better if Proton keeps Lotus for another 3 years and then decide whether to maintain the brand or sell it off to others.

How are they supposed to do that?! The Myvi is popular due to the bad reputation Proton has. Cutting costs won’t help with that, who knows if they won’t cut on quality, AGAIN?

But if they can say: See… you don’t like our products, but those in Europe, they do, they trust us, maybe then Malaysia could see that the times have changed? Of course they have to improve product quality and SCs too, so that one day people will realize that the products are better than they used to be. But that, like everything else, will take a while.

You scared me for a brief moment there. It would indeed be very worrying if quality is sacrificed… again. That is one area that is too dear to be trimmed down.

Otherwise, I hope the cost cutting is limited to making operation more efficient. Reduce inventory, reduce wastage, that is the Just In Time production system, otherwise known as Toyota Production System. Another aspect would be to utilise the TM plant more.

I have driven saga flx and myvi 2012. I can say saga flx can’t even comparable to myvi in terms of NVH quality, especially the noisy engine sound come into the passenger compartment for no reason, and the weird humming sound. There is a strong feeling of steel to steel feedback from the car body….like it is just a steel box with 4 wheels. Maybe is because of the budget seat or suspension. The interior plastic is cheaper version as well compare to myvi.. saga using the same quality as the viva’s interior plastic.

Whoever says myvi is over priced and it should same price as Saga BLM is a nonsense… go test both and compare.

Myvi can sell well because the standard is there with a standard hatchback boot space.

Saga can sell well because it is the cheapest priced car in the class with a nice big boot space. The car body insulation is a budget one as well. Very basic budget car.

The Myvi in turn just turns into a turtle when you corner hard. Lotus isn’t known for the most comfortable ride quality in the world, they are known for cars that go extremely fast around corners, i.e. they don’t behave dangerous when you have to corner hard and fast (emergency situations of course).

I didn’t like driving the Myvi SE… ride was meh (mushy), manual gearbox was the worst thing I have every tried (ok, a Perodua Rusa is just as bad). It is like they intentionally made it bad so that you won’t speed, which you shouldn’t because the handling is dangerous.

And at least the Saga is a steel box, and not a tin box like some Peroduas are. :P

proton in these recent years has a matter of fact beaten myvi’s sale. i’m not sure about p2, but they have beaten perodua in a whole with saga/persona/exora batch. i guess they r allowed to go a bit further than that now huh?

Hmm..its kinda interesting to hear about this new owner’s plan..but i am not sure if it is a good move if they decided to change DSZ..we can see Proton is going in the right direction under DSZ..and about Lotus..well..i think we should wait a bit longer until they come out with their new model..

I agree with you big time. I’d like to see DSZ stays in Proton’s helm. He listens to complaints and corrects most of the mistakes despite numbers of difficulties encountered.

For Lotus, let’s give Lotus a final chance. Backed by their new capable employee line ups, renowned engineering arm and current product and quality improvement, I’m pretty confifdent Lotus will do good this time.

Remember Jaguar and Land Rover were bleeding Ford cash last time? Tata bought JLR, continue to invest and committed to JLR product development started by Ford. About 3 years and few billions later, JLR is making money for Tata.

How ironic would it be if Lotus, a year after it was sold, starts making profit? Also it is a halo brand… there could be a small relatively affordable Lotus based Proton sports car, which could raise brand awareness in other markets they try to enter.

How much did lotus pay you to give such complements? Add me in I want such easy cash too….. Everyone knows that lotus is draining money from proton. And worse still protons financial health isn’t as good as well, so it is only wise that they let go some share of the company. Furthermore u said vw bought Bugatti, that is because vw grp has only 2 loss making companies with the rest earning loads…

And Coz lack of confident of winning 2/3 majority or worse, possible losing to PR, thy r doing some early inhouse cleaning because more ugly numbers will pops up like popcorns if PR wins.

So selling proton will save tons of cronies and their dirty wealth incase democracy prevail. DRB cutting cost is actually saving cronies’ arse prior to elections, if not our jails will be overloaded if PR win.

You’re right it’s obvious up to a certain degree that this move might be to ship out their liability to cover their infidelity. The oppositions are pretty hot in tracking and exposing corruption let alone business losses due to poor or rather gluttonous and flamboyant decision making.

i don’t see any bad thing if lotus be reviewed so that it can stand alone and be successful, perhaps like what Audi is to its parent Volkswagen AG that bring to battle in protn boardroom. if that happen, both drb and lotus gain benefit, rather than relying on proton coffers.

Audi is not really a stand alone brand. They use the same engines, same platform, same everything. The last gen Audi A4 is now assembled, using the same factory as before (they just moved the entire factory to Spain), as a Seat (with tiny styling changes). Those brands are all very close to each other. Some (?) of the Bentley’s are based on the same platform as the VW Phaeton. VW and Porsche share a platform with the Tourag/Cayenne. etc.

Unless Proton manages to build Lotus based cars or vice versa (a Lotus Savvy with a more powerful engine? lol) I don’t see that happen… to that extend.

DSZ is still losing millions every year, and he has been at Proton for, what, 10 years? Its time for somebody else to get his chance to show his talent…. & for sure if he screws-up, DRB will sack him as well.

10 years? Sure… Ignorants like you for sure can’t be educated enough to know he was appointed 1st January 2006, at the time when Proton was at its worst. Oh wait, I forgot, today is 1st January 2016, I see, I see. I might need to get back to school to learn how to calculate 2012 – 2006 = 10 years…. NOT!

Sales of Proton cars do not pay the employees’ salaries? Jackiechanmymindisfulloffuck.jpg, are you CFA qualified? ACCA? ICAEW? All of them?

Hopefully the changes DRB-Hicom makes would have better impact on Proton business. However, changes would impact hard on the staff, dealer and parts provider but hopefully for the better for the consumers. Wishing they would retain some percent of Lotus share if they are thinking of selling it to obtain technologies Lotus are developing currently for the new cars especially the lightweight materials and new engine technologies.

yes very well say, lotus now is need most money…easy to say wait until 5 line production car debut ,and let see, if production for each that have to expense few billion more for marketing and production.

I am okay with whatever decision that DRB Hicom thinks is good for Proton, if they make it as a business decision. And at the end of everything, DRB Hicom have to take responsibility for what ever decisions that they make. If DRB Hicom fails along the way, the government have to stand aside and let the natural process happen…no more bail out.

do not sell lotus. that should be the main priority. along the other cost cutting measures like the third party car park.

trimming lotus yes. sell no.

if u sell lotus, u have nothing for world stage. and u got nothing in engineering advancement. plus their products will becoming to production only in 2013. they got their own engine running now. so selling it would be missing out the good things. which was paid by proton.

apart from that EMAS and Range Extender just recently, the only addition of lotus technology into proton products is the handling. which is great but that is it.

thats it. nothing more. i found it to be disturbingly not sufficient.

syed mokhtar should get more of lotus technology into proton. bring those advancement here. into protons products.

Sell Lotus and Proton is planned for doom! If Lotus is no use, why Shanghai Auto and others may want to own Lotus.

The only business sense is to make Lotus engineering work for other OEMs through JV or collaboration and build low cost manufacturing/R&D bases with partners worldwide and not limited only to Europe or Malaysia.

Not only Lotus, we can forsee that Proton may also have difficulty in promoting their own brand of cars to global market in the near future due to competitiveness.

It’s time for DRB-HiCOM to rethink what auto business that will be profitable and suited for Proton/Lotus in the next 5 years. Perhaps new opportunities may exist in designing/manufacturing of performance parts/engines for commercial vans, coaches/buses/trains. If so, Lotus input is desirable.

When Lotus came out with Evora, I think it was a good idea. The car is almost perfect in many way which will cater for far larger audiens than Elise and Exige. Lotus could’ve develop their future cars around Evora platform bit by bit.

Then came Dany Bahar ruining everything with his over the top Ferrari wannabe attitude and logger head with Tony Fernandes in F1. He waste such a lot of money which could be use to develop Lotus better.

“If Lotus continues to ride on Proton, it will be cancerous, it will be like a parasite.’

Wrong! Without lotus as technical partner, and without the excellent R&H that Proton is reknowned for, Proton cars will surely lose its attractiveness. Its symbiosis. Without the ‘Lotus factor’, proton cars cannot survive where it is today. Surely u need to sacrifice some in order to gain some.

The future value of Lotus shall the turnaround plan work in the next 5 years, is greater than the debt that Proton & DRB Hicom has to suffer now. Its a risk that will bear fruit if Lotus is managed prudently.

Lotus is not a volume seller ,the amount of taxpayers money going into Lotus revamp might not see a sizeable return as its a niche market car.coming up the cars to sell is one thing,public acceptance and sales is another problem.to me better cut of lotus,cuz despite having lotus for all these years,proton did nothing other than attach a “Lotus Ride and Handling” sticker.use the money dumped into lotus to do RnD for proton cars first,by having a good domestic and hopefully foreign sales figure,the proton can purchase wateva car maker n turn it into a profitable car maker as well.like how audi contributes to its parent company VW.

but dude,think about it….what up with the ‘lotus factor’…if there is thing called lotus factor,all proton cars would easily outdone the japanese and koreans cars in terms of handling but no they didnt,so where the fuck is the ‘lotus factor’

Being owner of Lotus, and having their cars, in parts, being developed by Lotus (especially ride and handling) should also be a big selling point when trying to expand to other markets where Lotus enjoys a great reputation, but Proton is unknown or only known for lousy Wiras and Satrias and Sagas (the old ones).

It’s a well-known secret that Proton always pay higher prices for inferior products. They then pay many millions USD to a US management consultancy firm AT Kearney Inc to have their multi-national (from US, Europe, Asia and Australia) consultants stationed in Proton months after months to do procurement for them. That’s ingenious way to spend the taxpayers money.

how about we make a poll..if u think DRB should keep lotus please thumb up..if sell lotus please thumb down..as for me..DRB should keep lotus and at the same time fully utilize the expertise in what lotus is good for..

quite a useless idea…. if 1,000,000 people vote “keep Lotus”, & 2 people vote “sell Lotus”, you think DRB care what you think?!?!

This is not UMNO or PKR, this is a business entity who have spent RM2b to buy proton, so proton better start making real profit or else DRB have to sell even their underwear to pay back bank loan for that RM2b….!

good or bad…the future lotus cars are delicious…..dont know the quality though…time will tell

If I am the owner of Proton, i would not sell Lotus…(in fact i think part of their commitment is not to sell of any asset for certain period of time) Instead, i will trim the 5 years plan. the cars is way to much. Keep the Esprit, Elite and Eterne and Elise. Remove Elan and Ethos…maybe eterne can be drop as well…or wait longer… Should push forward timeline for elise….That should come next after Esprit… Preferably both at 2013…For the time being, totally rework the interior of Evora (totally change it, and replace the engine with different one…not camry…it may be good but the reputation kills it….)

For Proton, the cost cutting measure is good, but my immediate attention should be new cars development…They definitely need replacement for Perdana (perhaps should take eterne and turn that to Perdana)…they should ride on satria neo succes and bring in new model to replace the aged neo….they also need to create new market, pick up truck ( a real one not small pick up like arena) and SUV (cant understand why they never use the ASX, the styling is good enough….)…also the city car EMAS must come ASAP….that should be bread and butter together with SAGA and new TUAH…

Come on tandercats, no need to waste money anymore, it’s time for you to compete like a man with no protection from gahmen anymore. 25 years of protection from gahmen is long enough. Because of you, all rakyat are suffering. If you are good, you are good. If you’re shite tutup kedaila.

haha..rakyat this, rakyat that, rakyat bleed, rakyat said… naive… we’re not even the majority!! i’m one of the fool that rebel without a cause, thought things could be better, heck gotta admit i greed for more..at the end, karma police, my business abroad bleed due to bad reputation HE put on Malaysian!!! anyway…

don’t be deaf by a group of loud monkey in a fancy-zoo, yet try to listen for the primate at the silence humbling jungle out there.. they don’t ask for much, they’re just wanna keep what they already had. it’s the bad apple on top of the basket that we need to cut off. and me, might be u as well, learn our lesson, just be good to everyone on the throne @ potentially gona be on it, but not too close as i was.. we never knew how its hurt..

p/s :

Yes Lotus draining proton’s capital. but considering the 5years plan, the all-star Malaysian Bankers loan syndicate which back by the Proton itself, Lotus revival on auto sport & world.. i think instead of fully sell it, maybe proton can keep 51% and sell another 49%. give it 4 years final-evaluation time.. let say after 4 years under new Proton management & Lotus G. still lotus not making any money .. well then, sayonara!!!!

DRB Hicom better improve your service centre in term of technician skills, responbilities, efficiency and listen to your customer feedback, if not, it will back to square. I won’t border the car brand, service is a main priority for me as a consumer.

don’t sell LOTUS… bring them to Boleh Land… make it cheaper n sell it at proton edar with Malaysian price..n don’t forget teh tarik hook ..i dont mind if planting CFE campro inside..as long as can get it under 100k

1. Retrench all those chronies in PROTON who did not give any beneficial contribution to PROTON.
2. Get / hire good skill / technical workers from our automotive industry. They are plenty.
3. Propose Vision & Mission accompany with 5 years turn over plan for PROTON and it employees.
4. Get back to basic policy in industry. Productivity Improvement (Efficiency Improvement), Quality Improvement (Customer Satisfaction) and Reduce Cost (CAPEX & OPEX). Should implement plant wide.
5. Re-organise sales, marketing including branches and dealers.
6. All decisions should be based on technical aspects of the industry and not based on chronies and who knows who.
7. IMPORTANTLY: Coalition with PERODUA and get the best from both world. Both can be benifited from this coalition.

Before financial crisis, proton was owned by hicom. After that, it sold to khazanah due to financial burden. If not of the protectionism policy, it was already sold to Foreigner Company. After that, hicom change its direction from manufacturer to rather as assembly such as Honda and gm and the latest is Volkswagen. Now hicom acquire back proton. As I guest, it wants to use full facilities in tanjung malim plant, which is now under utilizing to assembly its marques. It is better to use it rather than find a location to build up from the ground.

Actually, lotus is still useful. Because in certain market, people acknowledge lotus more than proton. So it can be used to penetrate that market. Such as Youngman lotus in china. Using proton model or engine but using lotus name. So y not using this concept marketing to the other market?

i don’t understand why people keep saying proton is using taxpayer money…i know they already repaid 400 million loan they got from government when they started the company years ago…so already paid…so why keep saying using taxpayer money? with the amount of money the pay to their staffs, suppliers, giving scholarships etc…is enough to justify that initial 400 million loan….maybe because khazanah bought the share so it is considered tax payer money? proton strengthen the automotive industries…before, not many Malaysian can use their engineering skill to build cars…now..okaylah i know you are going to say protection problem what soever but tell me how many design engineers work for Tan Chong? These engineer got paid and also pay tax too just like you…cuma banyak ke tak…ada bayar 26% tax ke? maybe ada…so tak payahlah talk about taxpayer money

Polo, please check the hundreds of millions proton gets in tax exemptions, r&d grants, etc from Msia government before commenting, these are tax payers money. As a business case, Proton has failed. This is a fact. It’s the legacy and fantasy of a proud but foolish individual, backed by state money. Profits that proton made are a result of consumers having no other choice because of protectionism. Would you choose a proton over a toyota/honda/nissan/vw if their prices are the same? Why isn’t your nick tiara, juara or savvy, but polo? No need to answer…

AFAIK ASEAN cars are taxed the same as local cars. The only reason why a Toyota is more expensive is because people still think taxes for them are high, where in reality Toyota make insane profits.

Also Protons are cheaper than other cars, they cut costs a lot to be cheaper than the competition (guess why the quality for a while was very lousy). It’s like in Europe… a Dacia or Korean car is cheaper than a VW, even though the taxes are the same.

Kadajawi, MITI’s excise duty rates aren’t written in jawi, so maybe that’s why you missed the “small” detail. Why non-national brands are so expensive is because of excise duty imposed on them, Proton and Perodua do not have to pay any excise duty. Do look it up in your free time.

Is that so? then, can u xplain why is there a price different between peninsular malaysia and duty free island like langkawi? please do explain to us why is there 38% discount in langkawi? please do explain n please stop bullshitting..

I’m not saying that cars aren’t cheaper there, but the tax rates AFAIK should be the same. However it is possible that UMW doesn’t make as much profit in Langkawi, as the people there aren’t used to paying that much of a premium for a Toyota over a Proton. As long as people in Peninsular Malaysia still believe that the only reason why the cars are so expensive is the tax, Toyota will gladly keep the price high.

better sell lotus. too musch money at stake with lotus. just sell good design cars for normal family la. simple but yet can make good profit if ur cars are good. lotus? who wants to buy, market very small, too many better competitors with better reputation.

What has Lotus developed in the last decade or two which had brought the car industry forward? Nothing! Did they invent DSG? Nope. Did they introduced common rail diesel? Nope. Hybrid? Nope. Highly efficient turbo petrol engines? Nope. Electric propulsion? Nope. New manufacturing standards? Nope.

In fact, they’ve been so poor (creatively and literally speaking), they are using Toyota powertrains!!!! What is the point of showing all their concepts, they are never going to be made. And that pretty boy Bahar looks more like a Levi’s model…what has he done to deserve a four-year contract extension? Please sell Lotus to Hafei, Changan or something, at least they have deeper pockets!

Let me try to enlighten. Which division of Lotus are you referring to? Lotus Cars or Lotus Engineering? Lotus Engineering is the one with great value. They provide plenty of engineering services and solutions to other automotive manufacturers. Who do you think designed Porsche’s Valve Lift system now in use for about a decade. Who provided expertise for the Nissan GTR suspension set-up? The list goes on and on and on. Rather than generalize, could it be possible that you are simply ignorant?

I hate the fact that made Lotus involved in F1; no thanks to both Tony F and Proton’s management to allow the Caterham boss to interfere in the expensive F1 business.

Having said that, to do another MV AGUSTA is even worse- Lotus shouldn’t be release before Dany Bahar roll out their new generation Porsche-rival Lotus series of sport car. Too much investment already made.

Pray God, DRB not doing another Tiaranization episode of Proton. Otherwise, better let VW AG acquire this ailing manufacturer instead of favorite local boy. Perhaps, selling Proton to Malaysian of Chinese ethnic with proven business credential better than everything it has stake DRB.

“Auto maker Perusahaan Otomobil Nasional Bhd (KLSE:PROT) (Proton) has announced that it will acquire the remaining three million shares of Usahasama Proton-DRB Sdn Bhd (USPD) from Khazanah Nasional Bhd for RM81.06 million (US$21.33 million). ”

1)Personally i dont believe DRB will be able to transform Proton better than what is going on. If it was that easy, it can be done long time b4!
2)Worst is when the focus shifted & management direction changed even the first direction is yet to be fruitful.
3)My verdict: Yes we might see Proton will be profitable in coming 3-5 years. But longer prospect still the same. eventually we’ll see DRB selling Proton to foreigners after they have cash out/ striping Proton’s values.

If DRB-Hicom wants to create synergies between Proton & Lotus , one obvious way is through parts commonization. The next Lotus Elise could share many parts with Proton models..engines, suspension, interior parts, electrical..that’s economies of scale..

I wonder how Proton would defend themselves from technology vultures if they do sold Lotus. At least right now they have a chest full of Lotus patents to shield them. It will really make my day if at the end they will have to buy Lotus back at exorbitant price.

Another factor which also counts regarding Lotus position within the group, is that DRB-HICOM is currently working on a sportscar project with Potenza Cars, UK (Westfield & GTM brands). Could there be a synergy in this case? Perhaps DRB-HICOM could combined Lotus & Westfield/GTM technical expertise?…

Dear Polo, why isn’t your name Juara or Tiara? If you had a choice, would you choose a Proton over a Toyota/Honda/Nissan/Kia/VW if the cars are the same price? The only reason why Proton has profits is because 60% of Msian car buyers can’t afford non-national brands. And non-national brands are so expensive because of government policies protecting proton.

loser like u should work harder to buy non-national brand vehicle. rather than asking GOV to bring down the price of other car y not u work harder for it. if all the car price gone down, mayb petro price wil increase or ur teh tarik too~ understand??

I agree with u mr Showoff. Part of the sales failure to Proton cars is also mindset of we Msians. How superb the quality, BMW tech ke, lotus tech ke, but if the brand of your car is Proton buatan Malaysia..nothing arrogant to show off to your neighbours, relatives, org kampung etc. That’s why Msian makers can only sell cars below the range of RM50,000 because no rival from import cars. Drp I beli Inspira, baik I beli Honda City ke, Kia Forte ke, Toyota Vios ke…That’s why Perodua only make low price cars and they make money. We always see the failure because of the management, design, quality, planning but there are also other things that we should think too. The Dealers ..if they don’t get want they want ..they will stab behind you. I have known one CEO who was once ex Honda Motorcycle Msia management team. He said his ex Japanese Honda MD has mentioned that between Honda and Modenas motorcycle, the percentage of defect is at par, it means the quality is almost the same. But in terms of relationship with the Dealers, they will really,really take care of ..fulfill whatever their request and this is what Modenas lack of..not because they do not want to do it, but they can’t , only the people inside know why.

To support Proton in the beginning wasn’t that bad of an idea, although they should have done it with subsidies so they can easily get rid of the support fast. However the support went on far too long, without an end in sight, so Proton was lazy.

They should have had a plan where for example the first 3 years of car manufacturing are subsidized (buy a Proton and the government pays half of it), then it gets less every year. Kickstart the company, but tell them they need to create a competitive product within 10 years, cause otherwise the competitors will easily kick them out of business again.

Proton has started to develop decent products in recent years, but it happened way too late. Why couldn’t they start developing their own cars in 80s, so that in the 90s they would have a few products?

Those ‘Untouchable’ vendors must be shitting in their pants right now! Yeah baby!

When MMC took over Johor Port, they had an engineer based inside to have a look and feel for the daily happening inside for months, all incognito. When the deal was struck, En. Khalid became its ED and sent lot of people packing.

In 27 years, Proton havent invented a R&D like engine or gearbox..still importing refurbish engine from MMC and the Campro also is not coming from Proton engineer just little involvement with Lotus UK..then this GLC DRB takeover also mostly like to cover Proton debt & cronies..come on la the Germans have invented cars since 1900’s & ours 27 years..’it’s like a baby learn how to walk” come on Proton, you got a lot of engineers in any field but nothing you can proud of it if you still using MMC+Lotus handling in all the cars..think about it..

Are you a frog under the coconut shell…? Proton is no longer using MMC engines since they stopped the production of the old Wira, Perdana and Saga kereta kebal aka LMST. The only exception is Proton Arena aka Jumbuck but only produced for Australian market. Now the only foreign engine being used by Proton is the Renault D4F in the Savvy.

As for gearboxes, most carmakers buy gearboxes from vendors, including Nissan and even Toyota. FYI, not many carmakers make their own gearboxes like Mitsubishi and Honda. Most Japanese carmakers established a joint-venture company named Jatco to supply gearboxes to them. Nissan buys gearboxes from Aichi Kikai. Honda has a long history of being the first Japanese carmaker to use auto gearboxes by making their own gearboxes using spur gears and multiple disc clutches instead of conventional helical gears in most auto gearboxes.

okey2.. all ur opinion will be print out and will be consider.. i’ll ask my staff to check the details.. apa namaaa… even if we sell LOTUS, maybe will sell to Robert Kwok.. he got diabetes, consume sugar too much, and now he repent already.. no more sugar.. its time for cars.. Puan Sri kirim salam kat hangpa semua na..

Proton is not that bad. European cars lagi banyak problems…ranging from all kind of electronic failures, to engine / transmission issues. Your Audi or BMW will spend more time in the workshop than in your garage / porch. Of course, what’s missing is Proton still stuck in ancient mentality. I just can’t understand how somebody can approve car like it being design in the 90s. Lagi satu, guna la better quality materials for the interiors.

If I am from DRB, these are the few things that I will do.
1. Fire the Chief Designer and bring in somebody who understand modern design,
2. Fire the Quality Director for approving the procurement of those defective products from vendors.
3. Fire the Quality Manager and Supervisor at the assembly line for not doing a better job inspecting the final product.
4. Fire the Product Planning Director – apa nih? How come all current Proton cars are about the same size? Semuanya in subcompact and compact category. Where are the midsize and full size cars, plus cash cow SUV.
5. Fire the Marketing Director – don’t know why Proton is not focusing on the American market. American are not that choosy kalau nak bandingkan dgn European. Some American cars are even more hideous than Proton, but still sell like hot cakes.
6. Of course, fire the MD la, and replace with me…..hahahaaa

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